All My Colleagues Are Animals 98

Epilogue 1: If Line – Childhood Sweethearts (Part 5)

The bell rang for class, and it was Chinese. Hong Jie walked into the classroom with a stack of documents and said:

“We’ve finished going over the short-answer questions on the monthly exam. Now it’s time for the final essay.”

“In this exam, one of our classmates received a perfect score on her excellent essay. The teacher has printed it out for everyone to appreciate and learn from.”

“Class representative, please help me pass them out.”

Pei the Red Panda had just woken up, and there was still a faint red mark of drowsiness on her snow-white cheeks.

The documents were handed to her, and she blinked her sleepy peach blossom eyes, wanting to see who had written the perfect score essay—

First Year (Class 1) Pei Rong.

Oh, it was her, Pei the Red Panda…

Wait, it was her, Pei the Red Panda?!

Pei the Red Panda’s peach blossom eyes suddenly widened.

Yesterday, Ye Qingyu had reminded the red panda to check her scores for each subject and mark them on the test paper.

But after Pei the Red Panda had marked the short-answer questions, she had forgotten to look at the essay score.

This was a sudden and unexpected surprise.

As a red panda who had always been held in the palm of their hands and praised by her mother and younger sister for even eating one more bite of bamboo shoots, Pei the Red Panda immediately and proudly lifted her head and looked at Ye Qingyu.

Her pink lips curled up, and her shimmering peach blossom eyes were direct.

She didn’t speak, just waited for praise.

Ye Qingyu smiled and said in a whisper, “Our Pei the Red Panda is a great writer!”

The corners of Pei the Red Panda’s lips lifted even higher.

On the stage, Hong Jie said:

“This time, the essay was on the topic of ‘Mother.’ Everyone has written about it countless times since they were little, and their thinking is also constrained by past patterns.”

“But our classmate Pei Rong was able to be original and write about her mother from a red panda’s perspective. The language is realistic and vivid, and the emotions are full and moving, as if she had really been a red panda.”

“This essay has both a lively cuteness and a deep emotion. Everyone might as well read it carefully.”

While reading the essay, the classroom was very quiet at first, and then a murmur gradually floated up from all directions—

“Oh my god, this is so cute… Classmate Pei Rong not only looks like a red panda, but her heart is also like a red panda.”

“It’s really hard not to model her after a red panda!”

“She even has fluffy handwriting…”

“Ooh-ooh-ooh, I want to rua her.”

After class, a few girls’ hearts were overflowing with love, and they gathered around Pei Rong’s seat, their eyes sparkling like stars.

“You’re so cute. Can I pet your head?”

Pei the Red Panda blinked her peach blossom eyes and instinctively stuck out her pink tongue to lightly lick the tip of her teeth.

And this common red panda action made the girls’ gazes even more fervent—

She’s exactly the same!

“I…”

Just as Pei the Red Panda was about to answer, she suddenly felt her shoulder being lightly held.

Immediately after, the girls saw their usually gentle and kind, enthusiastic and benevolent class president lightly curl her lips into a faint smile.

Like a cold and ruthless keeper at a zoo, stopping tourists from petting:

“I’m sorry, you can’t pet this one.”

***

At noon, the group of six once again went to the cafeteria for a meal.

Luo Bian said, “I heard the cafeteria has a new dessert shop.”

The word “dessert” reached her ears and made a certain red panda’s heart pound.

She immediately said, “Let’s go!”

And so, everyone went to the dessert shop together, lively.

As they pushed the door open, the sweet smell of baking immediately filled their noses, and the rich milky fragrance was refreshing to the heart.

Pei the Red Panda was engrossed at the sight and wanted to buy some freshly baked little cakes.

Ye Qingyu reminded:

“Let’s go get a plate and tongs first.”

Just as the human and the red panda were on their way to get tongs, they saw a classmate with long, white-and-pink hair standing by the tongs rack, talking to a staff member.

The staff member was enthusiastically greeting, “Classmate, if you want to eat any bread or pastries, you can get a pair of tongs and get them yourself.”

The classmate with long, white-and-pink hair shook her head repeatedly and quickly took three steps back, and waved her hand at the staff member.

She was like a nun facing the temptation of wine and meat, struggling to maintain her Dao heart.

“No, I can’t clamp!”

“Jiejie said, don’t just clamp things when you’re outside.”

“I’ve even given up chopsticks now. I only use a spoon to eat, ooh-ooh-ooh…”

Confused by the series of strange words, the staff member’s gaze was dazed. “…”

Shui Zhu looked at the classmate with long, white-and-pink hair, and for a moment, she was in a daze.

She was suddenly reminded of her childhood before she had moved—

In the neighboring courtyard was a fluffy pelican whose feathers had not yet fully grown, and every day, she would flap her little wings and enthusiastically follow behind an elegant swan, and sweetly call her Jiejie.

And the pelican’s inexperienced face after she had transformed into her human form vaguely overlapped with the young girl who was now just beginning to grow up.

Her ears twitched, and Shui Zhu walked through the crowd and stood in front of the classmate with long, white-and-pink hair.

“Gu Yue?”

Gu Yue turned her head, her eyes dazed for a moment, and she did not recognize Shui Zhu.

After a moment, she finally had a realization. “Tun?!”

Shui Zhu said, “Mhm.”

Gu Yue was immediately pleasantly surprised. “It’s actually you! I still remember when you were playing at your house, and I was playing at my house.”

Shui Zhu said, “Yes.”

“And then one day, you poked your beak through the fence between our two courtyards and clamped my head.”

Everyone: “…”

Gu Yue chuckled and scratched her head, a little embarrassed. “Was I that amazing?”

Tun-Tun: “This is me holding a grudge, not a compliment.”

Gu Yue blinked her eyes. “Oh.”

In the end, Gu Yue still did not touch the tongs and, with everyone’s help, successfully bought her bread.

From then on, the group of six became a group of seven, and every day, they would go to their usual private room to eat together.

***

The autumn grew deeper, and the school’s maple forest was a sea of red.

During the long break, the human and the red panda were holding hands and walking in the depths of the maple forest, their footsteps making a rustling sound on the dry leaves.

A gentle breeze blew by, and the forest rustled, like a leaping flame.

A scorching red maple leaf fell on top of Pei the Red Panda’s head, and with her long, reddish-brown hair, it was a brilliant sight.

Ye Qingyu raised a hand to play with the maple leaf, so that it would adorn Pei Rong’s bright and beautiful peach-blossom face in a more beautiful way.

Pei the Red Panda let the girl do as she pleased and then muttered, “It’s cold.”

As a fluffy red panda, how could she be afraid of this little bit of cold?

She just wanted a hug.

Ye Qingyu did not expose her, and just a clear and sweet smile appeared in her eyes.

She unzipped her autumn school uniform jacket and held the entire Pei Rong in her arms.

Cuddling in the cool autumn wind and the fully-dyed forest seemed to be particularly comfortable.

Ding-ding-ding—

Without realizing it, it was time for class.

“Ying!” Pei the Red Panda was startled and opened her peach blossom eyes.

“Run,” Ye Qingyu said.

Just as the human and the red panda were about to rush to class, as they passed by a certain tree, they saw a girl stumbling and sitting down behind the tree trunk, her hands covering her head.

The two of them stopped in their tracks.

Ye Qingyu led Pei the Red Panda toward her and saw that the sitting girl had long, beautiful hair that was a mix of black, orange, and white.

She was covering the top of her head with both hands, and between her fingers, the tips of a cat’s ears were faintly visible, and the fine fur was swaying in the gentle breeze.

Ye Qingyu vaguely remembered that she was a classmate who was always on the top ten list of the first year of high school.

Hearing the sound of footsteps on fallen leaves, the girl trembled all over.

She immediately and warily looked up, her pupils vertical, like a little cat that was about to bristle.

Pei the Red Panda said, “Classmate, what’s wrong with you?”

Bai Shuang was so nervous that her snow-white cheeks were flushed pink. She struggled to cover her furry ears more tightly and said in a cool voice, “I’m fine.”

Pei the Red Panda licked the tip of her teeth. “Don’t be afraid. I’m a red panda. Are you a calico cat?”

Bai Shuang was slightly stunned.

…

During the long break, classmate Bai Shuang had come to the maple forest alone to play and had transformed into a little cat to climb a tree.

As a result, she had slipped and had injured her ear, and after she had transformed back into her human form, she had found that her ears would not go back in.

After hearing the reason and looking at that bleeding, orange, furry ear, both the human and the red panda felt a heartache.

Pei the Red Panda said, “You might have to treat the wound on your ear first before it will go back in.”

With an excellent veterinarian mother, both the human and the red panda knew a lot.

They immediately decided to go to the school hospital to get some medical supplies to stop the bleeding and bandage Bai Shuang.

The school hospital clinic.

The autumn wind was blowing in through the window, and the not-fully-closed door was silently opened with it.

A girl was rolling around on a hospital bed, and a crimson fox tail was lightly lifted behind her, its tip wrapped around the doctor’s wrist.

“Ooh-ooh, Doctor Jiejie, it’s so uncomfortable.”

Liu Mian looked helpless and took the girl’s fluffy tail tip from her wrist.

“Classmate Tu Shan, you come every day at a set time and say you’re uncomfortable, but I really can’t find your illness.”

“I’m just a small school doctor, and my medical skills are limited. Classmate Tu Shan might as well go and find a good veterinarian. A Leaf Hospital is very good.”

Tu Shan Yue did not listen and blinked her pair of initially charming fox eyes at Doctor Jiejie, her tone soft and limp.

“But I feel that only Doctor Jiejie can cure me.”

The human and the red panda were stunned at the door. “…”

After a moment, Tu Shan Yue was once again and for the umpteenth time pulled by the ear by Doctor Liu and chased off the hospital bed.

Discovering that the clinic door was open, she paused slightly.

Then she put on her shoes with an air of indifference and walked out of the clinic with a spirited air, her large crimson tail moving lightly behind her, and you couldn’t see at all where she was uncomfortable.

“Ah!”

After leaving, Tu Shan Yue almost ran into the human and the red panda.

She was so scared she jumped, and her dark hair with crimson streaks was faintly bristling.

Then she realized that her tail was still out and said, “Uh, oh no…”

Then she tucked her tail away and quickly and hurriedly disappeared.

The human and the red panda looked at each other.

But, now it seemed they didn’t have to do it themselves. They could just let Doctor Liu directly help Bai Shuang with her injured cat ear.

…

Deep autumn.

The weather grew colder, and the night was dark.

The dean skillfully caught a young couple on the playground and, with a cool and ruthless air, notified their parents.

She then appeared like a ghost at the back door of a certain classroom and inspected the evening self-study situation, scaring a student who was secretly reading a novel so much that her whole body trembled, and her soul almost left her body.

After doing all this, the dean contentedly walked straight to the school flowerbed.

In the flowerbed was a rare plant that she had carefully cultivated.

After a full year of diligent watering, it had finally borne several small, yellow, and sweet fruits a few days ago, and she was planning to pick them today.

But, at this moment, she saw that the branches of the plant were completely empty, and they had been picked clean.

The lonely “No Picking” sign on the side looked very pale.

The autumn wind swept by, and the dean’s steps paused.

“…Where are my fruits?!”

The dean was furious.

…

After the evening self-study, the human and the red panda were holding hands, preparing to go to the bicycle shed to get their bike.

Smack—

A sound suddenly came from a pile of dry leaves on the side.

“Ying!”

The noise was sudden, and Pei the Red Panda was so scared that her whole body trembled, and her two palms were open, and she pitifully raised them above her ears.

Ye Qingyu quickly and skillfully held the red panda in her arms and patted her head to comfort her.

After the red panda had slowly calmed down, she also kissed her ear to comfort her.

Then she walked close to the pile of dry leaves and, from her pocket, took out her phone and turned on the flashlight to illuminate.

She saw a little beige bird lying on its back in the pile, spread out into a fluffy little pancake.

Ye Qingyu’s breath hitched.

Is this bird dead?

She bent down and carefully picked up the fluffy little bird.

“Jiu-jiu…” The little bird was giving off a certain sweet, alcoholic fruit scent, and its beak was slightly open, and it was making a dazed sound.

Pei the Red Panda said, “It’s not dead! Let’s take it home and have Mom save it.”

Ye Qingyu: “Mhm!”

The human and the red panda got on their bicycle and quickly returned home.

Pei the Red Panda held the bird and, upon entering, anxiously called out, “Mom!”

Hearing the red panda’s anxious voice, Ye Zhao immediately stood up and came to the entryway. “What’s wrong, cubs?”

“Mom, save the bird!” Pei the Red Panda said, her peach blossom eyes so anxious they were misty.

Ye Zhao paused slightly.

After a moment.

Ye Zhao said, “I think it’s just drunk.”

She pointed to the little bird’s round and fluffy belly and patiently explained to her daughters:

“It’s autumn now, and many of the wild fruits on the roadside are overripe and have fermented, and the little beasts will get drunk if they eat too much.”

Ye Qingyu said, “Then after it sobers up, will it be fine?”

Ye Zhao nodded. “That’s right.”

Only then did the human and the red panda feel at ease.

The family of three placed the drunken little bird in a temporary, warm little nest, fed it some water, and then went their separate ways to wash up and go to sleep.

The next morning, they and the girl by the little nest looked at each other.

The girl was wearing a Zhisong High School uniform, and her long, beige hair had a faint, bright, watery blue in it.

She was dizzy from the drunken fruit and smiled foolishly at them.

“Hi, welcome to my home…”

Pei the Red Panda’s ears twitched slightly, and she corrected, “This is my home.”

The girl blinked her clear eyes and, a beat later, answered:

“You’re just saying that. I don’t believe you.”

…

“Yes, don’t worry. Nian Qiu is eating breakfast and will be going to school with my daughters in a little while.”

Ye Zhao said on the phone.

Nian Qiu’s parents breathed a sigh of relief and said gratefully:

“Thank you so much! I and the school were looking for the child all night, and we were about to call the police…”

The three of them went out to school together, and Ye Qingyu looked at the bicycle with only two seats and was in a dilemma.

A thought struck Nian Qiu, and she transformed into a fluffy little bird and slipped into Pei the Red Panda’s pocket.

“Jiu-jiu.” The little bird poked its head out and said happily, “Let’s go!”

A clear bell rang, and the bicycle lightly weaved through the autumn path, and its tires rolled over the crimson fallen leaves, making a pleasant rustling sound.

As they approached the school, they looked up and saw the first-year dean standing at the school gate.

When Ye Qingyu rode past, she politely called out, “Good morning, Teacher Li.”

Pei the Red Panda followed, “Good morning, Teacher Li.”

Immediately after, a beige, fluffy head poked out from her pocket. “Teacher Li…”

Pei the Red Panda quickly and skillfully pushed her back in.

Fortunately, the dean did not notice the bird and just nodded in response to their greeting.

Her face was haggard, and she had grown a few more white hairs overnight.

Last night, her beloved fruits had mysteriously disappeared.

Later, a parent had contacted the school, saying that their child had not come home on time, and she had been out searching all night, sleepless.

Now, the parent said that the student had been found, but her fruits would never come back.

This autumn was particularly cold for the dean.

***

At noon, the group of ten went to the cafeteria for a meal.

The colorful, fluffy heads gathered together, and the scene was truly spectacular, and many students paid their respects.

Seeing the school bully alliance pass by majestically, a student patted his friend’s shoulder.

Seeing his friend turn his head, she pointed to her own head and said in a low voice:

“Say, if I dye this thing green, can I join them?”